1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to image backup systems and, more particularly, to restoration of encrypted files stored within a virtual machine image.
2. Description of the Related Art
Backup systems are used to protect data against loss. Typically, a backup system includes software that copies volume images to a backup storage device (e.g., such as a tape drive). If data is lost (e.g., due to user error or device failure), the backed-up image of the data can be retrieved from the backup storage device and restored as an entire image. Once the backed-up image is restored, specific files can be restored from the image to the original file system. Alternatively, some backup systems are sometimes able to restore some individual unencrypted files directly from a backup image.
Unfortunately, the existence of encrypted files has complicated the restoration of individual files from within a backup image. Systems for the restoration of encrypted files from a backup image frequently fail in restoring an individual encrypted file due to restrictions imposed by operating system security rights. Restoration of an individual file frequently fails unless the entire backup image is restored and the desired encrypted file is then extracted from the restored image. These limitations undermine the ability to efficiently restore individual encrypted files from a full image, and users are frequently required to undertake the time-consumptive and disruptive use of a full image restore to retrieve an individual encrypted file, restoring more data than is desired in a manner that wastes time and system resources.
While the present invention is susceptible to various modifications and alternative forms, specific embodiments are provided as examples in the drawings and detailed description. It should be understood that the drawings and detailed description are not intended to limit the present invention to the particular form disclosed. Instead, the intention is to cover all modifications, equivalents and alternatives falling within the spirit and scope of the present invention as defined by the appended claims.